The present invention relates to a dehydrogenation apparatus.
The dehydrogenation reaction is accompanied by extensive heat absorption, and from the thermodynamical viewpoint, a higher reaction temperature results in a more advantageous dehydrogenation reaction.
On an industrial scale, the dehydrogenation reaction is generally carried out at a temperature of 550.degree. to 650.degree. C., and this reaction is a typical instance of large-energy-consumption type chemical processes. A large quantity of heat energy should be supplied to a reactor for maintaining a high temperature and ensuring much reaction heat. Accordingly, various contrivances have been made on the conventional dehydrogenation reaction apparatuses for overcoming this defect. For example, there are adopted a method in which the reactor is divided into a plurality of zones and a reheating zone is disposed in the intermediate portion of the reactor to prevent the fall of the reaction temperature, and a method in which a heating tube is directly arranged in a reaction layer. In the dehydrogenation reaction, in principle, the equilibrium reaction ratio is low, and therefore, in the conventional apparatus, it is necessary to dispose a special device for separating the unreacted starting material from the product. Furthermore, supply of a heat energy is indispensable for preventing the fall of the temperature of the reaction layer accompanying the dehydrogenation.